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Colorado's best places to see art right now

"Far From Forever," left, by Ryan Everson, and Terry Campbell's "The Man Who Found What He Was Looking For," center, and "No More Neck Pain."

Art spaces come and go, but lately there's been a lot more coming in the equation.

In the past year alone, Denver got a nostalgic showplace for its regional heritage via the American Museum of Western Art, a smart and serious room for contemporary international work at the Anschutz Medical Campus' Fulginiti Pavilion and, just this week, a fresh place for local talent to exhibit (and hopefully sell) its stuff at the Art Students League's new outpost in Denver's Art District on Santa Fe.

A detail from Cole Sternberg's acrylic "the senator now felt moved to extract the last ounce of enjoyment from the situation by refreshing his own and the others minds with the less important details" at David B. Smith Gallery. (Provided by David B. Smith Gallery)

The upside of all this expansion: Variety. Some galleries are high-end retail boutiques; others are folksy and aim to expose new talent. You can have your visual art formal or funky in this town now, you can have it with a docent adding insight, a salesperson watching your every move or with a leisurely cup of coffee.

Here's a list of eight exhibition spaces that seem to have found a comfortable balance. They're all doing something right, right now, and with art, it's all about right now. Stop, see, shop here.

What: Finally, the University of Colorado's all-business medical complex finds its soul with this 1,000-square-foot art gallery, located in the new Center for Bioethics and Humanities. Curator Simon Zalkind is taking his assignment seriously, lining the room with art meant to connect body and spirit. The recent show of AIDS-related photos from Wes Kennedy and Albert Winn made this space's potential painfully, and solidly, clear.

For the exhibit, "Sweet Tooth," at the Shoppe, Andrew Novick photographed 1,000 desserts, and then ate them. (Provided by Andrew Novick)

What: Adam Gildar is just what Denver needs. A young (under 30), optimistic art entrepreneur with good taste and a decent level of dare. He dropped his high-end gallery in the heart of boho South Broadway, giving the party district some art cred and providing Denver's rising class of creatives with a space where they can be themselves. The present-tense work of Jonathan Saiz, Hollis + Lana and Amber Cobb looks right at home there.

What's next: Gildar joins in on Denver's Month of Photography with "Real is a Feeling," a group show, March 9-April 6, with Travis Egedy, Kristen Hatgi, Mario Zoots and others.

DAVID B. SMITH GALLERY

Where: 1543 A Wazee St. 303-893-4234 or davidbsmithgallery.com.

What: David B. Smith represents some of the most engaging artists on the international scene, bringing their work to Denver at his LoDo headquarters. Smith is plugged in worldwide, but his local influence is serious; no other commercial gallery in Colorado offers a more comprehensive take on what gets shown and sold in the broad world of contemporary art. Smith's show of Gregory Euclide's feral dioramas was a highlight of last fall. Look for work by Paul Jacobsen and Ryan McLennan, as well.

What's next: Cole Sternberg's Kafka-inspired exhibit of installations, photography and painting is another don't-miss show at Smith. Through March 23.

THE SHOPPE

Where: 3103 E. Colfax Ave. 303-322-3969 or theshoppedenver.com.

What: This is no ordinary coffee shop/bakery/gallery/hangout. The Shoppe has amazing peanut butter cookie sandwiches, two sizes of Nutella whoopie pies, 34 kinds of cereal by the bowl and art by an awkward assortment of talented, and sometimes oddly arranged, minds that make this city an interesting place to live.

What's next: For "Sweet Tooth," artist, photographer and obsessive collector Andrew Novick exhibits 1,000 photographs that he took of desserts, right before he ate them. Starts March 9.

What: Good things are happening at GOCA these days, thanks to the pleasantly surprising programming taking place under director Daisy McConnell, who knows how to score a knockout. Michael Salter's giant styrofoam robot is a hoot on campus, while the downtown franchise's "Ceramica" is keeping clay interesting in Colorado.

What's next: You have until April 12 to catch "Ceramica." For sure, check out Jerry Morris' life-size vintage car, constructed of ceramic casts of hood ornaments hung one by one from the ceiling. Amazing stuff.

ART STUDENTS LEAGUE OF DENVER (on Santa Fe Drive)

Where: 760 Santa Fe Drive. 303-778-6990 or asld.org.

What: The Art Students League, based for 25 years in the historic Sherman School building at 200 Grant St., is making a serious leap this week, taking over the space formerly occupied by the Sandy Carson Gallery in the Santa Fe Arts District. Carson was there for three decades before shutting down a few years back, and her financial support is making the endeavor possible. The league plans to step up its game, exhibiting the best in local art.

What: Imagine being the art gallery for three public institutions: all those local artist shows, all those student exhibitions, all those college presidents who aren't going to let any cultural controversies ruin their careers. Emmanuel pulls it off deftly, serving as art central for the University of Colorado at Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver and Community College of Denver. The gallery, directed by Shannon K. Corrigan, keeps its standards high, its walls inclusive and its installations top-notch.

What's next: "MetroNOW 2013," an exhibition of art from students across the Auraria community, runs through Thursday.

What: Mega-businessman Philip Anschutz has been showing his collection of Western art in various forms for years, but it all comes together conveniently and brilliantly at this museum, which reconfigured itself last May. The paintings, displayed salon-style, are inarguable: Frederic Remington, Albert Bierstadt, George Catlin. You have to make reservations, pay $10 and take a tour, but you get your money's worth.

What's next: You sign up for a tour, 25 visitors at a time, on Mondays and Wednesdays.